Bajrangi Bhaijaan ***½
Dir: Kabir Khan
Starring: Salman Khan, Harshaali Malhotra, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Kareena Kapoor, Om Puri, Meher Vij

If you can put out of your mind that Salman Khan is a convicted felon, found guilty for killing a man by running over him in his car, and is currently out on bail, then you are certainly going to have a good time watching his latest film. This is a new Salman Khan: a kinder, gentler, Salman; a Salman without an ever-ready quip or an ever-ready fist (he’s too ticklish to even wrestle); a Salman who doesn’t even take his shirt off at the drop of a hat (there is a shirtless Salman scene in the movie but it is brief and is kind of warranted); a Salman who plays an actual character rather than just himself in yet another masala flick. Consequently, this just may be Salman’s best yet - both movie and performance wise.

I don’t think this is a calculated attempt at a needed image makeover (given Salman’s legal troubles). This is the vision writer/director Kabir Khan had for his movie, Salman bought into that vision and the timing of the film’s release just happens to come at the right time for the beleaguered star. Salman plays Bajrangi, a bit of a simpleton whose father and his father’s friend in whose house he lives are hard core Hindutva party members. Yet, Bajrangi vows to return Shahida/Munni, a lost, mute Pakistani girl (Harshaali Malhotra) back to her own village across the border no matter what the cost. The second half of the movie follows Bajrangi and Munni in their travels across Pakistan aided by an intrepid Pakistani journalist, Chand Nawab (Nawazzuddin Siddiqui).

Kabir Khan is an intelligent filmmaker with the right sensibilities (I liked his political thriller New York well enough – if only he hadn’t messed it up with a weak, simple-minded ending - and the spy action flick Eik Tha Tiger was the best Salman-starrer post-Dabangg) and here he manages to score a home run. Yes, the film is simplistic in its message of neighbourly love and simple humanity overcoming all obstacles, political or religious. Yes, it is clearly manipulative (especially in its farfetched yet very moving climax). Yet, it works.

It works because its faith in the essential goodness of humanity (naïve though it may be) is life-affirming and heart-warming. It works because, despite its length, the script is tight, effectively mixing the emotional moments with just the right amount of timely humour (Siddiqui gets the best lines). It works because all the performances work. Kareena Kapoor, as the nominal love interest, is superfluous to requirements but she gets the job done. Salman is excellent (by his standards) because he reins it in. Nawazuddin Siddiqui is brilliant as always (I am a huge fan of his). Om Puri as a kindly Pakistani maulvi is as good as he usually is. Meher Vij makes her presence felt as Shahida/Munni’s mother. And it works because the angelic Harshaali Malhotra as Shahida/Munni- who is really the central character - is just a complete winner. She will melt the hardest of hearts - guaranteed.

Note: There is an actual Chand Nawab who lives and works in Pakistan. The scene introducing Nawazuddin Siddiqui as the Pakistani journalist is lifted wholesale from a clip available on YouTube/Dailymotion. Check it out. It is hilarious.

Cut to chase: Simplistic and cleverly manipulative but effectively movingly nevertheless

Kmumtaz1@hotmail.com; Twitter: @KhusroMumtaz